


Forgetful Smiles

by Delnic (orphan_account)



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: AU, Advanced Technology, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Dystopia, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst, Broken people, But that's really just the first chapter, Death, Eventual Keith/Lance (Voltron), Genius Pidge, Happy, Other, a HUGE big ass zipwire, afterwards it's comical(?) and carefree kinda, broken keith, hopeful lance, i will add more tags as this goes on, past keith/lance, yet it's old tehnology, zipwire
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-08
Updated: 2017-04-10
Packaged: 2018-10-16 11:27:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,902
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10570362
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/Delnic
Summary: "Shiro would've disapproved" The taller of the two stated lightly, motioning to the cigarette, yet the context behind the words was anything but.Somewhere in the distance, a lonesome bird tweeted solemnly, unaccompanied."What a horrible thing to say" The other responded, matching the careless facade. He flicked his cigarette and watched the ashes as they joined the breeze on its journey.The two were then brought to a standstill, neither making any effort to speak. The silence was thick, suffocatingly so, but that was just how it was.---Or alternatively, a dystopian AU which flicks between a painful present and a much happier past where the Garrison is a twisted military organisation (gotta have them in the apocalypse or it would'be one!) with new-old technology, city-wide DIY zip wires and a familiar group of faces leading themselves to an ominous end goal.Note: The first chapter is a glimpse into the future and is drastically different from the situations there after





	1. Disaprovement

A gentle breeze harbouring the stench of regret and remorse snaked through the rusted city's many twists and turns, ruffling limp leaves that hung lifelessly from sparse trees, nudging corroded road signs and encouraging the spread of the rancid odour that clung to the city centre like a curse. It was that same breeze that prevented the area from becoming stagnant - barely. That and the souls who adamantly refused to admit defeat and leave the place to wither in peace. 

Although, they weren't the only ones that occupied the decaying shell of what used to be an exuberant area. There were travellers, scavengers, merchants and others who refused to tie themselves down. Hence why he was stood where he was, folded arms leaning gently upon a frail metal fence that looked as though it might just cave in if he were to move even slightly. He was observing or maybe waiting, perhaps both, atop a flat roof, looking across at the golden sunlight struggling to penetrate the thick smog that cloaked the sky, just ahead of the suspended train tracks that shared the same fragile appearance as the fencing, level with his feet.

A second figure entered the scene, leaving the door ajar in his wake. He too went on to lean on the fence, receiving a creaking protest as a result of his lackadaisical actions. The space between the two was far too vast to just be accommodating for personal space yet not so large that they couldn't communicate without ease. 

"Hey" The new arrival spoke up after a few moments of ambient silence and a ray of strained sunlight highlighted his features, as if on cue. His tan skin lightly glowed while his oak brown eyes narrowed in order to adjust to his spontaneous spotlight. _Suiting._

"Hey" The other replied, still smothered by translucent shadows. However, his silhouette did allow for his shoulder-length hair to and short stature (in comparison to the other) to be identified. A puff of smoke left his lips to join the festering air pollution as he took a drag of the cigarette held loosely between two of his fingers. 

The atmosphere was tranquil yet an underlying tension was undeniably present, the kind that could break at a moments notice. 

"Shiro would've disapproved" The taller of the two stated lightly, motioning to the cigarette, yet the context behind the words was anything but. 

Somewhere in the distance, a lonesome bird tweeted solemnly, unaccompanied.

"What a horrible thing to say" The other responded, matching the careless facade. He flicked his cigarette and watched the ashes as they joined the breeze on its journey.

"...yeah" He agreed, light leaving his face, obstructed by the smog.

The two were then brought to a standstill, neither making any effort to speak. The silence was thick, suffocatingly so, but that was just how it was. 

Three or four puffs of smoke later and a light hum was sounded, emitted from the now vibrating tracks suspended by miraculously strong cables latched to eroded yet sturdy iron columns, forming something akin to a loosened suspension bridge. As the vibrations grew in intensity, the tracks themselves swayed gently to and fro.

A small smile tugged at the tanned male's mouth in anticipation, reminiscent of a more hopeful, younger version of himself. Unfortunately, it was soon extinguished when he snook a glance at the other, who's face still donned that oh so familiar unchanging scowl; _a reminder._

With his budding exhilaration sapped prematurely, he wasn't fully prepared for what came next despite knowing what to expect. He was too enthralled in contemplation. 

An explosion of sound.

The sudden chaotic mix of screeches and clangs and huffs and sizzling electrified the atmosphere and ripped through the air with an uncanny level of ferocity, closely followed by a violent gale that felt as though it was one mile an hour from shattering the fencing that already had chunks torn away prior.

The shorter man had ducked behind the fencing, a planned countermeasure, using the structure as a fractured windbreaker.  
He turned to face the other man (also planned), hair flying in his face, severely obscuring his vision. Had he not, he would've missed how the other had been taken aback by the sudden force, yanking on the metal with too much strength, uprooting it from its concrete base and left with nothing to keep him tethered to the building. 

Despite the distance (both mental and physical), the powerful gale and general sense of peril, the man launched himself over to him, grasping his arm to ensure that he didn't fall victim to the six storey drop below. 

Not long after, the initial outburst settled and his hair ceased to whipped about wildly, allowing him to focus on the origin, the purpose of their wait. 

Before them was a sleek-bodied train clearly designed to be as streamline as possible. One could speculate that it had been quite awe-inspiring upon invention but its current beaten state lacked any real merit. Tiles were missing, allowing for an insight into its inner aluminium mesh and solid skeletal structure. Mocha stains decorated the length of it and almost all of the windows were broken if not simply removed. The driver was even less impressive, a vacant ageing man with a glossy look about the eyes. 

"Thanks, man" The one he now had in his arms spoke. The smile was back, but it was hesitant. As though he was testing the waters, scared of something, a possible outcome. 

He chose not to respond but instead dropped him, out of harm's way of the drop but directly in harm's way regarding the concrete slabs that the flooring consisted of. 

With a yelp and a deft but overly dramatic move to avoid any serious injury, he haphazardly, yet somehow gracefully, landed on his backside. His manoeuvre was skilful and he was admittedly showing off a little. All for nothing though, he realised as the one member of his audience had already left him for the dust, already hopping onto one of the adjacent carriages.

"Keith!" He called out to his abandoner, yet the man did not turn to face his addresser but did pause his quest for a moderately comfy seat, as comfy as seats could get on an old-age decrepit vehicle such as the train. 

"You're still an asshole, no matter what happens" He continued, no longer needing to shout as the same silence from earlier had once again swamped over the city. This time, Keith did turn around, just a degree or so, looking just off to the side of him, avoiding eye contact. 

"I know"

And, just for a second, Lance swore he saw a sliver of that signature smirk he was so close to forgetting. 

It wasn't over yet.


	2. Future Bound Trio

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a blast to the past involving three of our beloved heroes as come up with a somewhat convoluted plan to escape a life-threatening predicament.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so I wrote this at 2 AM but didn't post it 'cause I knew it would've been full of errors and I'm the only one checking it so it's here at 1 PM instead. Yay.

"For the record, I think this is possibly the second worst idea you guys have _ever_ come up with" Hunk stated, practically shivering with fear. 

The whole setting was ridiculously dangerous, three unsupervised teenagers fumbling around on top of the tallest point in the city that they could feasibly scale which just so happened to be one of those oversized apartment complexes dotted about the land that was built when living space was depleting to drastic levels. They were talking _crazy_ big, as in Hunk-took-all-day-to-climb-to-the-roof-and-was-only-a-floor-behind-Lance big. _So much for trying not to over-exert themselves to save food._ Although, he had to admit that the view was somewhat breathtaking - in a grotesque sense. The entirety of the city's expanse could be viewed within a second if he simply spun on the spot; every crumbling building, every dead tree and every house fire. Especially the house fires. 

If it weren't for the fire, Hunk would've never have even came close to considering embarking on the painstaking trek to where he stood currently (if only the elevators were still functioning, they had been fast to accommodate the enormous number of floors - or so Pidge had speculated aloud).

It was common knowledge apparently that when a fire started in a city such as this one unattended that it'd soon spread across the whole stretch of it, according to some old woman they'd bumped into while investigating the smoke anyway. Pidge had verbally noted that it was logical while Lance scoffed. Not that he was laughing after the flames engulfed the sector they had left just a mere hour after.

So, with a fire fast approaching which running from was futile, what does the infamous technological genius Pidge come up with?

A giant zip wire. 

A _freaking_ city wide _zip wire_.

Hunk was _astounded_ ,

"Hey, it's not _the_ worst though" Pidge offered, a mischevious smile playing on his lips while he tinkered with some stolen Garrison tech. His grand plan was to replace one of the gun's (Hunk had never even seen half the arsenal of the Garrison with it being off limits so he couldn't identify which model or type out of the hundreds) ammunition with a hook secured onto a very long rope that previously belonged to a laundry towing system that reached from where they were situated to the basement level and back again. It would seem that this was one of the buildings equipped with less luxurious technology, practically primitive in their eyes, which wasn't surprising when taking into account the minuscule sizing of the apartments. The concept that thousands of people had lived in these conditions dizied Hunk just to think about, he was sure he wouldn't have been able to survive like that. 

Whatever Pidge was using, Hunk guessed it had to be powerful since the boy was confident in its capability to send the rope flying all the way to the outskirt of the city. 

"It's only the second worst because I don't think _anything_ can top letting Lance pilot a military grade helicopter and _purposefully_ crash into a high-security Garrison outpost - with us on board!" Hunk retorted, emphasising the last point with flailing hand gestures. 

"That was fuuuuun" Lance reflected. he was currently swinging from a washing line he'd repurposed since not a whole lot laundry was being done. Well, maybe that sleeping man they had crept passed in one of the apartments could. Now he thought about it, Hunk figured that were probably quite a few inhabitants they'd walked by unknowingly on their journey up the never ending staircase. In retrospect, they were lucky they hadn't been jumped. 

Hunk dismissed his swinging friends comment with a sigh and turned his attention back to Pidge. 

"How did you get that thing anyway? It had to be in the restricted section" 

"Section? That thing was whole block man, or maybe even two" Lance added with his usual exaggerated facial expressions. 

"Welllll.... It's a long story" Pidge warned jokingly, flashing them a toothy grin. 

Before replying, Hunk pointedly slumped down against the railing to signify his exasperation at his two companions antics with a shake of the head for added effect. "You know what? I don't wanna know" 

"Good thing too because..." Pidge drawled out his last syllable as he flicked off his glasses and raised a pair of binoculars to his eyes (also stolen from the Garrison) and directed his vision to the edge of the fire's reach. "The fire looks like it's... five, maybe ten minutes from us" 

"What?!" The two others exclaimed in unison, Lance even dropped from his make-shift swing to take a look himself. 

"No kidding!" The lanky boy added, shock painted on his face. "It was all the way over there a bit ago!" He pointed vaguely to a selection of houses quite a distance from the fire's closest stretch, barely recognisable among the flames. A guess but an accurate one nonetheless. 

It was mesmerising, like a glowing orange sea with flickering waves and splashes of smoke. Husks of buildings and structures could be seen at the very beginning of the destruction where it had settled meanwhile tall buildings, not too dissimilar to the one they were on, jutted out from the swirling vortex of heat, some taking on the appearance of flaming pillars as the fire climbed from floor to floor, lapping at rooftops before inevitably enveloping them too. Hunk now shared Pidge's understanding of why it was logical to have assumed this would be the outcome. When overpopulation caused a housing dilemma too large to ignore, any non-road space became a waste of space. Alleyways and parks just weren't a thing in these districts. All in all, the close proximity made it extremely easy for the flames to jump from one building to the next. 

"Aaaaaand it's ready!" Pidge gleefully announced, hurriedly putting his tools back into their appropriate compartments within his rather large toolkit. He then tossed what looked like reinforced coat hangers at Hunk and Lance. Hunk felt as though he might just faint on the spot. 

"Pidge there is _no_ way this is gonna hold Lance's weight nevermind _mine_!" He spluttered to no avail, Pidge wasn't listening, he was too engrossed in the activity at hand. 

The small boy was attaching the modified gun to a metallic tripod of sorts and tentatively positioned it with extreme care to avoid any potential errors when shooting. They only had one go at this. 

"The rope was designed to support a large amount of weight in order to sustain hundreds of resident's washing needs, not to mentioned the metal crate itself was so heavy that I couldn't even tow it with my remote drone which is pretty strong for its size and then there's the fact that..." Pidge trailed off after noticing the waning patience of his comrades. "The point is, I've tested it and it's our only option now anyway"

Hunk was not in the least bit relieved but, with a quick look over the edge of the building, he was willing to accept the latter point.

At a sudden zipping sound, both Lance and Hunk locked their sights onto the gun which had released the rope and, as Pidge had assured, sprung taut after latching onto the ruins outside of the city. Despite this victory, Pidge allowed himself no time to revel in his successes, painfully aware of the humidity that had now flooded over them. 

"Lance, you go first and take your gun, I don't want to send our stuff down there and risk it getting stolen" The boy directed, a sense of authority settling on his mind. They didn't have a set leader but he felt the most adept for the role given the situation. 

Lance obliged delightedly. "I hope you guys are ready to witness this because I'm about thrash this aerial crash course!" He proclaimed before latching his hanger onto the rope and leaping with an adrenalin fueled cry, no hesitation noticeable. Hunk would envy his fearless attitude if it weren't for the complete lack of common sense regarding life-threatening danger. 

The two remaining boys simultaneously darted to the edge of the building, clasping their hands onto the railing. Hunk held his breath, fearing what may have become of one of the closest friends he'd ever had. He looked over to Pidge after deeming it impossible to spot Lance, _he must bee the size of a pin from their perspectives at this point_. Pidge had his binoculars up again and informed him that he'd found the daredevil after an anxious minute or so of silent focus. Sure enough, their Garrison communicators lit up with static and Lance's voice confirming his landing could be heard, along with a mention of having to "epicly dodge a building because" he was "just that damn handsomely tall". Hunk let himself smile at his friend's familiar boastings and took note of a possible obstacle.

"Right" Pidge began, capturing Hunk's attention. "I need you to help me load our baggage onto the line, they're already equipped with hangers, they're just heavy"

A couple of zipping bags and a melodramatic screech about almost being crushed from Lance later and only Hunk, Pidge and a tired washing line were left atop the building. The smoke's dark tendrils had reached even them now and it was starting to cause some breathing difficulty, especially for Pidge.

"Hunk, you - you go first" Pidge ordered between coughs.  
"What? No! You should-" Hunk began, but a certain unfamiliar fierceness in the eyes of his companions cut him short.  
"I don't want to leave the device... behind" He began, raising a clothed arm to his mouth to aid his breathing. "It could be useful, so I've gotta go last"  
Hunk wanted to question how Pidge would go about that exactly but was prevented from doing so by a buzzing at his hip. The communicators were going off. 

"Someone's approaching"

The two looked at each other, fear and knowing mingled in their gazes. Hunk set aside his fears and predictions in favour of the very real danger his friend could be in. "Someone" could mean anyone and Lance wasn't the kind to avoid elaboration.

He stole himself a quick intake of air to clear his focus and bring about an artificial calm upon his mind (which he only slightly regretted after a short coughing fit) and placed his own hanger on the rope, feeling only a slight dip as he applied more pressure.

After another forceful look from Pidge and a mental reminder of Lance's situation, he let his knees give way and gave himself willingly to the whims of the wind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the action plan by the way guys! Because I'm a slow writer but like to post regularly and don't want this to have a ridiculous amount of chapters, this is what's gonna happen. I'll post a few chapters and then compress them into other chapters, so if I update but it looks like the chapter count hasn't increased, that's why.

**Author's Note:**

> Alright, I am so sorry if it was confusing when it came to who was doing what, I found it really difficult to talk about them without using their names! So this is the beginning. I won't set myself a weekly quota or anything, just write when I want because last time I did that, I started to hate writing, hate the story and the work got very dry and started to lack quality pretty quickly. My apologies to that one person who consistently commented.


End file.
